UN: Iran has enough uranium for one bomb

posted at 6:27 pm on February 19, 2009 by Allahpundit

The only thing more predictable than a story every few weeks about Iran’s nuclear progress are the caveats that it’s not time to worry just yet. I guarantee that the very last news article written before the announcement that they’ve got the bomb will end with reassurances that it could be months or even years before the west has to act.

In a development that comes as the Obama administration is drawing up its policy on negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear programme, UN officials said Iran had produced more nuclear material than previously thought.

They said Iran had now accumulated more than one tonne of low enriched uranium hexafluoride at a facility in Natanz. If such a quantity were further enriched it could produce more than 20kg of fissile material – enough for a bomb…

However, UN officials emphasise that in order to produce fissile material Iran would have to reconfigure its Natanz plant to produce high enriched uranium rather than low enriched uranium – a highly visible step that would take months – or to shift its stockpile to another clandestine site…

A senior UN official added that countries usually waited until they had an enriched uranium stockpile sufficient for several bombs before proceeding to develop fissile material. But he conceded that Iran now had enough enriched uranium for one bomb.

How long would it take to turn their stockpile into 20kg of weaponized uranium? Depends on how many centrifuges they’re using to enrich it. Could be six months — or it could be much, much sooner. Of course, like the story says, that depends in turn on whether they have any clandestine enrichment sites set up. Could be that they don’t — or it could be that they have 10 to 15 of them. No wonder Ahmadinejad considers the matter of Iranian nukes “closed.” Exit question one: Er, didn’t the NYT already break this story in November? Exit question two: Is The One still planning to move full speed ahead on negotiations with Iran after they have the bomb? Offhand, I can’t recall anyone putting that question to him, but given our North Korea policy, I can only assume the answer’s yes. That’ll make for a lovely incentive for other countries weighing their proliferation options.

Comments

The WMD fiasco of Iraq is till very fresh in the minds of the public, another baseless claim about Iran would not be accepted imo.

Really? The sainted United Nations telling you that Iran has enough for a bomb doesn’t raise an eyebrow?

Why do I get the feeling that literally nothing short of an Iranian nuclear test would convince you that they’re bomb-capable?

Allahpundit on February 19, 2009 at 7:08 PM

That is why we are set up to respond to the first shot by IRAN. And if they only have one shot, they need to create an EMP from a floating barge off the east coast wiping out all electronics to 30% of the US.

Really? The sainted United Nations telling you that Iran has enough for a bomb doesn’t raise an eyebrow?

So now you’re asking me to put stock on what the UN tells me…why because is suits your hypothosis? You have more if’s, maybe’s, could’s and should’s in your post to fill a day’s oversight committee briefing!

Why do I get the feeling that literally nothing short of an Iranian nuclear test would convince you that they’re bomb-capable?

Allahpundit on February 19, 2009 at 7:08 PM

Why do I get the feeling fearmongering is all you have to offer in this debate?

I don’t mean to offend Alpha, but Joe Q Public is gunna want more, much more than what you have offered here to dance to the drum beat of war…again!

I am very sorry to say that Israel cannot count on the USA for anything at all at this time, not with the current administration and Congress. But of course Israel has a much bigger protector than the USA.

Why do I get the feeling fearmongering is all you have to offer in this debate?

I don’t mean to offend Alpha, but Joe Q Public is gunna want more, much more than what you have offered here to dance to the drum beat of war…again!

Chook on February 19, 2009 at 10:53 PM

fear mongering.If you want fear mongering,listen to Mr.Hope and Change talk about the economy to push his “pay for play” paybacks for all the votes he bought.
Listen to Al-gore talk about the world coming to an end if we don’t buy some carbon credits from him.

Stating the facts about Iran,the leading sponsor of terrorism in the world is not fear mongering. It is blowing away this bogus concept by liberals that Iran is no where near getting a bomb and all this was just made up by a bunch of neo-cons and Jews.

We have gone through the UN and EU,bringing in allies,like all the liberal “smart ones” say is the best route and Iran has used it to buy time to accomplish their goals of Nuclear armament.
This “sticks and carrots” game has done nothing but actually move the world closer to an actual nuclear war because Israel does not have the luxury to play appeasement games. The missiles are pointed at them and they will not wait for the world to act like they did in WWII which led to massive slaughter by the Third Reich.

When the leader of Iran says on a regular basis that they intend on destroying Israel,the people in touch with reality take this seriously and know that it needs to be addressed with a threat of serious force if Iran does not disarm.
Iran will laugh at anything less.

The Communists want Power. MAD worked with the USSR because they’d have no country left to have Power. Iran doesn’t want Power; they want Submission, and they are literally willing to destroy the world if the world won’t submit.

Ready for my Fatwa, but I’m Jewish anyway so it’s redundant: Satan’s job is to tell God about the sins of Jews, but God always dismisses him. Satan could take it because there was always the rest of the world who at the time were idolators and otherwise attack the Jews anyway. One Jew comes along and teaches the rest of the world about God. Eventually the world comes to follow this Jew’s teachings and Christianity flourishes. Satan would have none of that! It’s bad enough the Jews are God’s Chosen, but for the whole world to worship God? No, Satan must respond. He must pervert the world’s faith in God. He must trick them into worshipping him. Let them think he’s God, but he’ll preach them to do Evil. He’ll give himself an alias. He calls himself “Allah”. He needs his first disciple. A pervert who has a yen for young girls seems ideal …

The WMD fiasco of Iraq is till very fresh in the minds of the public, another baseless claim about Iran would not be accepted imo.

Really? The sainted United Nations telling you that Iran has enough for a bomb doesn’t raise an eyebrow?

Why do I get the feeling that literally nothing short of an Iranian nuclear test would convince you that they’re bomb-capable?

Allahpundit on February 19, 2009 at 7:08 PM

That is why we are set up to respond to the first shot by IRAN. And if they only have one shot, they need to create an EMP from a floating barge off the east coast wiping out all electronics to 30% of the US.

scruplesrx on February 19, 2009 at 10:39 PM

EMP over that wide of an area requires an airburst. They would have to smuggle it over in missle form.

“Iran may already have the capability to target the U.S. with a short-range missile by launching it from a freighter off the East Coast. A few years ago it was observed practicing the launch of Scuds from a barge in the Caspian Sea.”

Why do I get the feeling fearmongering is all you have to offer in this debate?

I don’t mean to offend Alpha, but Joe Q Public is gunna want more, much more than what you have offered here to dance to the drum beat of war…again!

Chook on February 19, 2009 at 10:53 PM

I guess when 50 million cars and 20 million iPods are useless then maybe Joe Q will finally wake up. But it will be tooooo late. By then you will be starving from lack of food and water.

“Iran may already have the capability to target the U.S. with a short-range missile by launching it from a freighter off the East Coast. A few years ago it was observed practicing the launch of Scuds from a barge in the Caspian Sea.”

scruplesrx on February 20, 2009 at 12:49 AM

As I seem to recall, the Nazis were planning something like this in WWII. Prüfstand XII. The idea was to tow a submerged barge behind a u-boat and launch a V2 at the US. Coupled with a nuclear warhead this could have changed the course of the war. That was 60 years ago. I would think that with even drug runners building subs, the threat is pretty realistic.

Not to worry though, we have a first lieutenant whose daughter hangs around with Hugo Chavez as CIA and an AG whose big priority is calling americans race cowards.